A Place Your Heart Can Call Home
by reddneckin
Summary: Andy Hillstrand had been at Ellen B's for a month, and had fallen hard for the plantation owner, Lizzie. Will a call from his ex wife make him change his mind. Book 2 in the Place Series. Ya'll enjoy and let me know what ya think.


It had been over two months since Andy had taken a job at Ellen B's and moved to Thomasville Georgia. It was a major change for him. It was hotter than he was used to, the humidity was terrible, but he was settling in. It was just what he needed. Lizzie's brother had accepted the fact that he was there, but Andy knew he did not like it.

Andy came in from the stables and hung his hat on the rack by the back door. He sat down to take his boots off. Lizzie was a clean freak, and hated for anyone to track dirt all over the house. He could hear Lizzie and her brother in a heated argument.

"You need to mind your own damn business" Lizzie screamed at her brother. "You would not have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of if it had not been for me."

"I am just looking out for you. You are my baby sister, and I raised your ass, don't forget that" Lizzie knew that things had not been easy for him. Their parents were killed in a plane crash when she was five and he was 15. He dropped out of school to take care of her, and she was grateful to him for that.

"I just don't want you to get hurt again baby girl" He walked over and kissed her on the forehead. " You are all I've got"

" I know that" Lizzie looked up at him, her big brown eyes welling up with tears. "But I am not a baby anymore. I can take care of myself, and I think I have proven that."

Lizzie had bought the plantation house over five years ago and was determined to turn it into something that she could be proud of. She had surely done that. Hunting and trapping gators on the side helped her to make loose ends meet when the Ellen B was not full of guests. Word had gotten out though, what a nice place the Ellen B was to stay, and she stayed booked most of the year. Rusty had gotten himself into trouble soon after she purchased the plantation, and Lizzie bailed him out of jail. The judge was a good friend of hers, and she promised her that he would stay clean. So far, he had.

"I just wish sometimes you could understand what it feels like to be on my side of the fence." Rusty turned to walk out of her office.

"Yeah," Lizzie said, "Me too"

Andy found Rusty outside preparing a trot line he was going to run to catch catfish.

"Hey man" Rusty looked up at him and nodded

"Hey, can we talk for a sec" Andy propped himself against the tailgate of the truck.

Rusty was older now, and his eyesight was not what it use to be. He peered at Andy over his glasses "Yeah, I reckon" Rusty turned back to the line he was tying. "Whats on your mind"

"I heard you and Lizzie talking earlier" Andy looked over at Rusty. Rusty laid the line down, and pulled a pack of Marlboro's out of his shirt pocket. He offered one to Andy,

"No thanks man, I don't smoke" Rusty shrugged and lit up. Taking a long drag, he blew the smoke up into the air.

"So, whats on your mind"

Andy did not quite know how to address this.. He paused a minute before he spoke.

"I did not realize you had raised her. Guess I can understand now why you are so protective of her" Andy folded his arms over his chest and sighed.

"She was married before" Rusty took another drag, and Andy gave him a shocked look.

Rusty thumped the cigarette , and turned back to the lines he was running.

"He was a big burly dude, lot bigger than you. He told her what to do, controlled the hell out of her. I didn't like it much, but figured it wasn't my business. He use to beat her too. " Rusty stole a sideways glance at Andy. Andy's jaw tightened, who the hell would do something like that to her.

"I got a call from the hospital one night. He had put her in ICU. I left the hospital that night, and told him if he had a set of smarts, he'd get the hell outta town. Guess he did, cause I never saw him again"

Andy nodded and thanked Rusty for the talk.

"Gonna run these trot lines later if you want to come along"

Andy walked back toward the house and opened the screen door. He knew Lizzie was in her office, so he walked down the hall.

Andy tapped on the door, "Can I come in"

Lizzie looked up and smiled, "Yeah sure, I am just about done here anyway." Her accountant was coming tomorrow, and Lizzie was trying to get the financial records in order.

Andy sat down in the chair by the window. "Had a talk with your brother. He told me about your ex"

Lizzie's head popped up, "He WHAT!" She was pissed. He had no right.

"Why didn't you tell me about that?" Andy watched her walk from the desk to her printer. She pulled the stack of paper off and slung it onto the floor.

"Damn him" You wait till I see his ass. Lizzie thought to herself. I am gonna bawl him out.

"Hey" Andy walked over and stood in front of her, "Don't be pissed at him. I shouldn't have asked:

Lizzie turned around and rubbed the back of her neck. That scar was still there. She faced Andy, "It wasn't his place to tell you about that. I would have told you myself when the time was right"

Lizzie walked over and closed the door. She leaned against the desk, and told Andy everything:

"Bud, my ex husband, was about 12 years older than me. I met him at a party my friend had one New Years. She told me he was bad news, but I didn't listen. The first six months everything was great. Then the controlling started, and then the beating. " Lizzie pulled her hair up and showed Andy the scar on the back of her neck.

"We got into a fight one night. I found out he was messin around on me." Lizzie pulled her hair in her hands and raised it up to show Andy the scar on the back of her neck," He hit me in the back with a beer bottle. I don't remember anything after that but waking up in ICU"

Andy looked at her "Where is he now"

Lizzie picked up the papers she had thrown on the floor and laid them on her desk. She sat back down, and folded her arms on the desk, "Prison. Two weeks after he put me in the hospital, he shot and killed guy who was cheating in a poker game. Those charges, plus the attempted murder charge against me put him in prison for the rest of his life"

Andy could not believe his ears. No wonder she was so stubborn and bullheaded.

"I am sorry you went through all that"

"Well, that's whiskey under the bridge. I picked myself up, dusted myself off, and I ain;t meanin to brag, but made a pretty good damn life for myself in spite of his ass."

Lizzie stood up and walked over to the window. Andy walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Don't be mad with your brother ok. He just loves you. He doesn't want you to get hurt again, and neither do I"

Andy guided Kosher, the big black Thoroughbred horse, into the stable. Lizzie sure had some beautiful horses, and she cared for them like they were her children. He walked out of the stable and grabbed the water hose. Pulling his ball cap off, he bent to take a drink. It was 90 degrees already and it wasn't even noon yet.

Lizzie walked up behind him, bent over the water hose and could not resist. She pushed her foot into his rear end and sent him face first into the dirt. He hopped up, turned around and glared at her.

"Oh, you are gonna pay dearly for that"

Lizzie squealed and took off running. Andy was a pretty fast runner and caught her in no time. He grabbed her around the waist, and both tumbled to the ground. Lizzie was laughing so hard she could not catch her breath. She had a contagious laugh that Andy had grown to love.

He pinned her to the ground, "Now I've got you" He gave her a long slow kiss.

"Ok, you got me, now let me up. I am hot as hell"

Andy looked down at her and grinned, "You sure are baby"

Lizzie wiggled under him, and pushed his shoulders. To be so tiny, she was strong as an ox. "Let me up"

They walked back to the main house. Rusty was gone to Moultrie to the Ag Fair, and would not be back till Thursday of the next week. Today was Wednesday, and there were no guests booked to stay at the plantation. For eight days, Andy had her all to himself, and he planned to make the best of it.

Lizzie fixed an amazing lunch of fried chicken, corn fritters and fried green tomatoes. They ate lunch and she went to the front desk. There were guests coming in next Friday and she wanted to make sure everything was ready.

Andy came up behind her and slid his hand under her shirt. He kissed her on the neck and she pulled away from him.

"Andy, I am busy" He kept kissing her neck.

"I know. I am busy too" He slid his hand down her pants and found her sweet spot. He started rubbing and Lizzie let out a contented sigh. She leaned back against him, enjoying every stroke.

"Oh Andy," She cried as he made her orgasm. It had been a long time since a man had made her feel that good. Andy had tried his damndest to have sex with her, but she kept putting him off.

He spun her around on the stool she sat on and pulled of her shirt and unhooked her bra.. He felt himself growing hard just looking at her. He shucked off his jeans, and helped Lizzie out of hers. Pulling her onto the floor, he smiled down at her, "Now its my turn baby" Andy entered her and thrust hard. Damn she felt good. With a final thrust, he came hard with a grunt, and collapsed on top of her. He rolled to one side and blew his breath out.

"Shit" He stole a sideways glance at her, "Where did you learn moves like that"

Lizzie stood up and reached for her shirt, "Its kinda like being on a horse. " She pulled her shirt over her head "You just hang on and ride hard"

The next few days, Lizzie and Andy did not see daylight much. Even though he had been at Ellen B's for months, he had never been inside of her room. It was decorated with deep purlple and cream colors. Andy looked around at the antique furniture. She had good taste that was for sure. The door opened and she came in with two beers and a big bag of pretzels. She handed Andy one of the beers, and sat down on the bed.

"I am curious about something" Andy took a drink of beer and popped a pretzel in his mouth. "Why did you call this place Ellen B's"

Lizzie pulled her hair back over her ear.

"There was a movie that I remember watching with my mama. It was called Tammy Tell Me True. It was about a girl who was raised on a river boat by her grandparents"

"And let me guess" Andy said. "The river boat was called Ellen B's"

"Yeah" Lizzie nodded.

Andy guessed maybe her mama's name had been Ellen. Lizzie had really done a nice job decorating the place and giving it back the look of the 1800's.

She laid back down on the bed and curled up beside Andy. Before long, she was asleep.

Andy's cell phone rung, and he jerked it up before the ringtone disturbed Lizzie. He stepped out into the hall and answered it.

"Hey man" It was his brother Jonathan. Andy had tried to call him every couple of weeks, but he had gotten busy with the horses and hadn't had the time.

"Hey, How's it going" Andy walked downstairs and pushed open the huge screen door that led out onto the porch. He walked over to the swing and sat down.

"Its going" Jonathan told him that the season was about to start, and he had hired two new guys. One to take Josh Harris' place, the other Mike Fourtner. Since Andy left, Mike would be captaining the boat during one of the two seasons they fished.

"Miss you dude" Jonathan said. "So how are things going there. You getting settled in"

"Yeah" Andy said, " I really like it here"

"You get in her pants yet" Jonathan said. He thought he probably already knew the answer. Andy was as big of a ladies man as Jonathan was. He had always been more shy, but still had no problem getting women.

"You think I would tell you if I had" Andy laughed. He and Jonathan were more than brothers, they were best friends, and told each other everything. Andy did not tell his brother about the abusive relationship Lizzie had been in, but did tell him about the amazing sex they had.

"Well man, I am gonna let you run. Give her a hug for me, and I love you dude:"

"Love you too man" Andy hung the phone up and shoved it back into his pocket.

He walked back upstairs and slid into bed beside Lizzie. He curled up beside her and moved his hand slowly past her stomach and between her legs. She woke up, stretched, smiled and turned toward him.

"Didn't meant to wake you" Andy said.

"Yes you did, Liar" She straddled him. "What do you want to do now?"

Andy ran his palm over her left breast, and Lizzie shivered.

"Give you two guesses" He pulled her back into the bed, and they stayed there the rest of the afternoon.

Lizzie met with her accountant and packed up the years records. She always made sure she kept everything for at least five years before tossing it. She had never been audited and hoped she never was. Guests would be arriving in a couple of days and she needed to get the cottages cleaned and ready. She bounded up the stairs and grabbed the keys to the golf cart. She had not seen Andy this morning, and guessed he was at the stables. That was one worry she didn't have with him being here. The horses were always cared for.

The cottages were cleaned and ready for the guests. Lizzie was starving, and was looking in the kitchen for something to eat. She heard the back door open, and peeked out the door. Andy was sitting on the bench just inside the door taking his boots off. He acted like something was bothering him yesterday, but she didn't pry. Lizzie hated it when people nosed into her business, and she tried not to do it herself.

Andy walked past the kitchen and went upstairs. He went into his room and shut the door. He laid down on the bed and stared at the celling. Today would have been his wedding anniversary. He was pissed as hell with himself for even thinking about it. He had a good life here with Lizzie. She was everything that he had ever dreamed a woman could be, plus some. Jonathans view of southern women was dead wrong. Lizzie was nothing like the women his brother had been with. She was a real lady, a hellcat when she had to be. "So why the fuck am I laying here thinking about my ex-wife" Andy got up from the bed and went into the bathroom and turned on the hot water. He took a hot shower and dressed. He had been kind of distant with Lizzie, and as perceptive as she was, he knew that she had picked up on the fact that something was wrong with him. She was not one to pry, and he was grateful for that.

Lizzie was sitting at the table eating a salad when Andy came downstairs.

"You want me to fix you something" Andy shook his head no.

"Nope, not hungry" He leaned back and sighed.

"Are you gonna tell me whats bothering you" Lizzie was afraid she had done something to upset him. They'd had an amazing night. Lizzie lost count at five orgasms. Damn that man was good in bed. She just could not figure what she could have done.

"I will baby, just not now" He kissed her and walked to the door.

Lizzie picked her plate up and walked to the kitchen. She ran some water in the sink to wash the dishes and looked out the window. Andy was standing under the pecan tree, hands shoved in his pockets jawline taught. Lizzie had seen that look more than once, and it scared her. She hoped he was not figuring on leaving. She washed the dishes from breakfast and lunch and dried her hands. She heard a familiar whistle and knew Rusty was back from the Ag Fair. She walked to the porch and whistled back. There "Redneck Radio" her brother had called it.

"Hey baby girl" Her brother scooped her up and twirled her around. "I missed you, you little shit. Where's Andy?'

"He's out back. I am worried about him. He acts like something is wrong."

Rusty nodded, "Well, just let him alone. He'll talk when he's ready"

Rusty walked to the passenger side of the truck and opened the door, he pushed the lock down and closed the truck door.

"We got room in the barn? Got two new tractors coming tomorrow, gotta have a place to store em." He sauntered up the steps and into the house.

Lizzie walked back inside and Andy was at the front desk. She looked at him, fear in her eyes. If he was thinking of going back to Alaska, she did not know what she would do. She hated to admit it to herself, but she had fallen hard for him.

"Are you ok" Lizzie's brown eyes were full of nothing but concern. Andy did not want to tell her how confused he was, and he sure as hell did not want to admit his feelings, not even to himself. After what Sabrina had done, he'd promised himself that he would never fall in love with anyone else. A quick roll in the hay was about all he would be looking for.

"Yeah, I will be" Andy walked back around to the front of the desk and gave her a quick sideways hug. "I need to go help Rusty get the barn ready"

Lizzie knew she had blown it. She just didn't know what the hell she had done to turn him so cold toward her.

"Well, I cant worry about that now," she said to herself and lifted the laundry hamper. She headed to the laundry room and started to toss towels into the washer as hot tears fell down her cheeks. How could she have been so stupid to fall for him so hard. Now, it was her guess he was leaving. She was sorry she had met him, sorry she had made love with him , and felt like the biggest idiot in the world for falling in love with Andy Hillstrand.

"You allright " Rusty asked Andy?

"Nope." Andy shook his head. " I am not allright" Andy grabbed a bag of feed and tossed it in the corner.

"You want to talk about it?" Andy sat down on the feed bag and took his hat off. He wiped the sweat off his face with a towel and looked up at Lizzie's brother.

"I have fallen pretty hard for your sister"

"Aw hell, I already knew that. You fell for her the first time you laid eyes on her" Rusty tossed a handful of trash into the barrel and sat down on the tailgate of the truck.

"That's not whats eating you though. Something happen between the two of you" Andy shook his head no. He was not about to let Lizzies brother know that he had sexed the hell out of her while he was gone to the AG Fair.

"Today would have been my wedding anniversary. I hate myself for even thinking about that bitch"

Rusty took a drag off his cigarette, "First loves are hard to get over" He hopped off the tailgate and walked over to a pile of rope. He hung it on a hook in the corner of the barn and noticed a huge wasp nest. "Gotta get that shit outta here" He said.

"All I can tell you is this, you gotta deal with this the best way you know how. You have to find a place your heart can call home. If that is here with my sister, fine, but don't be draggin your shitty baggage into her life, because she deserves better. You need to find a way to put your past life behind you son, or you and Lizzie will never be happy. You cant have a life with her when you cant put your past behind you."

Rusty clapped Andy on the back and got into his truck. He cranked the engine and drove off, leaving Andy there with his thoughts.

Andy noticed that Rusty had left his lighter laying on the inside handle of the barn door and picked it up. He walked over to the path that led to Pikes Pond and started down it. He reached into his shirt pocket and pulled a photo of him and Sabrina that had been made a year earlier. Andy squatted down at the waters edge and flicked the lighter. He turned the photo and held the lighter to one corner. He held it for a second before he dropped the burning photo into the water. He stood and watched as it slowly floated to the other side of the pond. He knew it would take a while for the memories of her to fade, but he was ready to make some new ones with Lizzie.

Andy walked back up to the main house to find Lizzie sitting on the porch swing. He walked up the steps and sat down on the swing beside her.

"Andy, did I do something.." Andy put his finger to her lips and shushed her.

"No, you have not done anything wrong. I should have been honest with you. Today would have been mine and Sabrina's anniversary."

Lizzie stared straight ahead, "And you are still in love with her" She stared to get up, and Andy stopped her.

"No baby, I have not been in love with her for a long time" Andy told her about the photograph, and how he was trying hard to erase her from his memory and get on with his life. He had hated himself for even thinking about it.

"20 years are hard to forget overnight" Lizzie told him.

Andy got up from the swing and walked over to the porch railing.

"You know, I was talking to your brother earlier. He gives some damn good advice when you can sift through it and figure out what the hell he's trying to say. He is right though," Andy turned and looked at Lizzie. "Sometimes you have to find a way to put your past behind you. You have to find a place for your heart to call home and I know where that place is now" Andy walked over to her and took her hands. She reached up and took both his hands in hers and stood up.

"I know where that place is now. It is right here with you. I know that you have a lot of bad memories too, hell, a lot more than I have, ,but if you are willing to help me forget my past, I am willing to help you forget yours."

Lizzie hugged him. The two stood, Andy holding her, for what seemed like forever, and Lizzie pulled away from him.

The two walked back into the main house and started up the stairs. Lizzie turned and looked at Andy, "I don't know what the future holds for us. But I promise you that I will bust my ass to make you happy" Andy knew she meant it. His cell phone rang and he reached in his pocket to answer it. When he looked at the Caller ID, his blood ran cold. It was Sabrina.


End file.
